Yes, I have a large library of reptile photos.
Here is another photo of that male cobra, just before he got annoyed. At this stage he was just curious; large cape cobras, particularly the males, tend to be quite laid back. This chap I have known for a while lives in a patch of fynbos close to Oudsthoorn Prison.

Here is another male I have known for four years at DeHoop Nature reserve. Here he is coming out of his burrow having a good look around before leaving. Spreading the hood is not necessarily a sign of aggression, just curiosity. I watch him from my bakkie. With other cobras and mambas I use binoculars, just like bird-watching. Yes, this male has been in the same burrow (refuge) for all that time. Another unusual thing is that the females come to him. With most snakes it is the males that go mate-searching. He also has a stumpy tail, lost it to a predator or perhaps a car! Will post a photo of him basking soon you can see the stumpy tail.

Here he is basking, quite relaxed, you can see the stumpy tail.
In summer he usually emerges at 1030hrs, you can almost set your watch by him. He basks for about half an hour and then moves off. I have seen him hunting away from the refuge on a number of ocassions, including lying on the road. He once picked up a dead skaapstecker of the road, the thing was really squashed, but he swallowed it gravel 'an all! He's quite a character, hate to see him get run over.

Cape cobras have a thing about climbing into the engine compartment of cars. I have taken quite a few out of such in tbhis area. Also black spitting cobra has been known to 'hitch a ride' from Namaqua to Cape Town!!

first of all I hope I am correct in assuming that this is indeed a cape cobra (as seen on the road to nossob in KTP about 4 weeks ago)

for all the minutes we stayed with it the snake did not move at all, at the same time not showing any (outside) wounds...I later learned that cape cobras sometimes play dead...but why? as a defense mechanism? defense against what? would a predator not "pick up" a presumably dead snake? or does the snake "hope" to look like for instance a branch of a tree?

Sorry to tell you this but there is a good reason why this one didn't move... it's dead... Few cobras have been known to play dead but the Rinkhals (not a true cobra) is brilliant at this game. But if given the chance they will make a rapid escape, and in all likelihood they will not do this in the road.

This snake was probably driven over and you often find that even though they have no external wounds, the back bone is broken and the snake is paralized and will die soon after. I would imagine this kind of injury will be even more common on sandy soil where there aren't many sharp objects to cut through the skin.

The reason rinkhals play dead is probably to get into a better position for a strike. They might be relatively slow strikers that some animals can dodge (such as meerkats and mongoose), but they might very well be able to get a bite in if the animal drops his/her guard because the snake is "dead". And other animals might simply lose interest if there is no movement...

"If you can only visit two continents in your lifetime, visit Africa.... TWICE" - R.Elliot

Unfortunately I have to agree with BushSnake I saw a couple just like it in the KTP, and they both looked the same- no external injuries (because of the sand), but very much dead. I've come across lots of Cape Cobras, and have never met one that plays dead or stays still. Cape Cobras will either hood up at you or get away at the first oppertunity.

The position it's in looks like it might have writhed around in pain before it died. Not nice...

Sorry I should have explained this in the previous post.... The posture isn't right for a snake that is playing dead. All the rinkhals, heralds and skaapstekers that I have seen play dead with their heads exposed, and not half buried in the sand like this one. Our snakes only really play dead once you start handling them, and will not remain like that if the "threat" moves on.

We often remove snakes from tar roads so that we can release them in safer environments, and all too often have we opened the bucket or bag the next morning only to find a snake that looked perfectly healthy the previous evening, to be laying belly up... I specifically remember a nice big fat puff adder in January near Lephalale (Ellisras) that still puffed at us, and still struck at moving objects, and she was completely dead the next morning. Only after a very detailed inspections did we find the broken back bone, but there were absolutely no external damage at all.

It remains extremely sad to see all these dead snakes on roads... especially in National Parks where people should be looking out for them!

"If you can only visit two continents in your lifetime, visit Africa.... TWICE" - R.Elliot

Cape Cobras really are beauiful snakes, I never get tired of watching them do what they do best. Anyway, I thought you may find this interesting:

Several completley different animals use thanatosis (playing dead) for several different reasons, but most of the smaller animals (some mice, snakes and dwarf mongooses) use it to deter birds of prey. Raptors grip with their front claws, and then drive the talon of the back toe in as a killing spike, when a raptor grabs an animal, it waits for the animal to struggle - the moment this happens, the raptor drives the "Killing talon" in.

Thanatosis in smaller animals has been evolved to make the animal freeze when it is grabbed (Eg. by an eagle) so that the eagle won't kill it, but merely take it to the skies, the moment the eagle puts the snake down, however, the snake will dart away or fight back.

In larger animals thanatosis will have other reasons, but I'm not sure of those...

Stopping under a huge camelthorn to watch some sociable weavers, I told my SO that cape cobras like to hunt inside their nests.

My words were not even cold when mr. cobra appeared.......!

Sighting was in January this year close to Mata-Mata (KGT).

It is the first time that I've seen the "speckled" phase of the cape cobra. When I shared my sighting with an oncoming tourist I was told that there is no such thing as a cape cobra, and that this snake is a "yellow mamba"!

Thanatosis in smaller animals has been evolved to make the animal freeze when it is grabbed (Eg. by an eagle) so that the eagle won't kill it, but merely take it to the skies, the moment the eagle puts the snake down, however, the snake will dart away or fight back.

Very interesting posting! I suspect the little blighters enjoy flying.

AdansoniaIncredible photos, you were at the right place at the right time! (I'm yet to see a yellow mamba. )